The 14th annual Taste of South Boston is Sunday, April 3, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Seaport Hotel in the Plaza Ballroom. There’s no better way to become familiar with the spectrum of dining experiences offered by (and in) South Boston. There’ll be wine and beer tasting, raffles, silent auction and live entertainment.
Possibly you are a newcomer to South Boston: Welcome. South Boston Online has a friendly suggestion to help you get acquainted with the array of eating adventures Southie has in store for you.
Equally as possible, you have lived here a long time – maybe all your life – and you’d like to sample the cuisine of Lower Broadway’s establishments, or those new places along our rapidly developing Waterfront.
In either case, South Boston Online’s suggestion is the same: Come to Taste of South Boston 2016, the 14th edition of this annual, highly popular party. You’ll be treated to servings of an incredible variety of excellent cuisines. The word “buffet” simply isn’t adequate to describe Taste of South Boston – “feast” is more accurate. Thirty sipping, sampling and swallowing establishments will provide you with a progressive evening-long, dining-and-drinking extravaganza. And save some room for dessert!
Here’s a list of six “classic” South Boston restaurants taking part, starting with Cathe Walsh’s Cranberry Café. She has been a mainstay of this event on all 14 occasions and recently celebrated Cranberry Café’s 20th anniversary. Did you know she’s expanding to 206 West Broadway next year? Look for something like “Cranberry West” in 2017. Taste of South Boston includes other long-time Southie establishments, too: The Barking Crab, Café Porto Bello, Lucky’s Lounge, No Name Restaurant and Sweet Tooth Boston.
Seven elegant South Boston establishments have joined “Taste of South Boston” for the first time this year: (in alphabetical order) Committee, Coppersmith, The Maiden, Moonshine 152, Outlook Kitchen and Bar, The Spirit of Boston and Worden Hall.
The “L’s” have it as well – Legal Harborside, Lincoln, Local 149 and Loco Tacqueria & Oyster Bar. As do the “T’s” – Tamo Bistro, Temezcal Cantina and Trade. Bastille Kitchen, Empire, and Stephi’s in Southie (with its two entrances and two venues – one of them fire lit) add more global cuisines to the mix. Stop, try them and then go back to each and every one of them. You can even absorb some modern culture at Executive Chef Brian Doyle’s table from Water Café at the ICA.
Specialty offerings can be found at The Juice Box and Miam Miam Macaronerie. Locavores will like – perhaps love – American Provisions. And specific mention must be made of Al’s Liquors (wine tasting) and Harpoon Brewery (craft beer sampling).
Taste of South Boston is $50 in advance ($60 at the door). After arriving at the Seaport Hotel’s Plaza Ballroom, you can dine to your heart’s content. There are no tips, no meal taxes. But there are raffles, silent auctions and live entertainment. And all proceeds benefit the South Boston Neighborhood Development Corporation. You can’t beat that with a stick. For tickets, visit TasteOfSouthBoston.com.
American Provisions, at 613 East Broadway, proves that Boston and New England have genuine gourmet agricultural products available locally. (Photo by Rick Winterson)
Moonshine 152 at 152 Dorchester Avenue. Note the side patio and “Boston’s Best 2015” poster on the door. (Photo by Rick Winterson)
Café Porto Bello, the iconic trattoria at 672 East Broadway, sports a well-deserved “Best of Boston” 2015 award in its window. (Photo by Rick Winterson)
